The Orlando Magic Thread

[MAntoniazzi]

Maybe a half-billion dollar arena will make them play better ?

What ?

Not that it will make them play better, but it would be better to go see them in a new world class arena!!!!!! or how about the concert

's, you go see there.

Sorry i just dont understand your comment.

As for the magic, to keep this relevant, yes they look very sloppy and the coach is to blame. Axe Brian HIll

[facilities man]

Is anyone else starting to see a pattern here?

Acquire superstar player, provide no help, he gets frustrated and leaves. Shaq!

Acquire superstar player, provide no help, he gets frustrated and leaves. Mcgrady!

Acquire superstar player, provide no help,........... ??? Howard!

This would have been the year for the Magic to not make the playoffs. There's about six legitimate lottery picks. They wouldn't have even needed to win the #1 pick. A bump up to #2 or #3 would have been better than a lot of other years drafts. This year you'll have Oden, Durrant, Horford, and Brewer, who could all be a #1 pick any year. With any luck the Magic could have picked up another franchise player, but they couldn't even get that right. They screw up their chance at a great player by limping into the playoffs and then embarrassing themselves.

Sorry to bash the team, but they are disappointing....

[bulldogger]

With Grant Hill getting up in age and possibly a replacement for Hedo (who IMO should be on the bench and would be a great 6th man), Brewer would be a perfect fit for the Magic.

[orlandonative]

I would think that the Magic would be poised for a large free-agent pick up this summer. They are currently well under the cap, and with Grant Hill, if they can persuade him into retirement this summer (sorry, this is a business) they will have an s-load of cash. The lack of player transactions by other teams prior to the trade deadline this year was a great thing for the Magic.

No more kids for now, and see ya Coach Hill.

[sunshine]

Just dont get some gangster looking tattoo player.

[bic]

Is anyone else starting to see a pattern here?

Acquire superstar player, provide no help, he gets frustrated and leaves. Shaq!

Acquire superstar player, provide no help, he gets frustrated and leaves. Mcgrady!

Acquire superstar player, provide no help,........... ??? Howard!

I get what you're trying to say, but the way you said it is wrong. We got Shaq and surrounded him with Penny, Nick Anderson, Horace Grant, Dennis Scott, and Darrell Armstrong. He had plenty of help, that's why the Magic won 60 games and made it to the NBA finals. He left because the Magic lowballed him and he wanted to become a big fish in a big pond.

Penny didn't leave because of a lack of help....the problem was Brian Hill, who he managed to get fired.

McGrady left because of a lack of help. Not gonna argue that.

Dwight would have several reasons to leave if he chose to-- lack of help, horrible coach, bad management, small market, stunted game development, etc.

[sunshine]

I think Dwight gonna stuck here for about 8 years when he signed his contract. Otis gonna do something this Summer. I think they gonna keep Darko the cute serbian and let Nelsion, Garrity and Diener go. Hopefully he is sensible enough to get a better couch. We have all the ingredients (Darko, Trevor, JJ) but dont have a good cook.

[facilities man]

I get what you're trying to say, but the way you said it is wrong. We got Shaq and surrounded him with Penny, Nick Anderson, Horace Grant, Dennis Scott, and Darrell Armstrong. He had plenty of help, that's why the Magic won 60 games and made it to the NBA finals. He left because the Magic lowballed him and he wanted to become a big fish in a big pond.

Penny didn't leave because of a lack of help....the problem was Brian Hill, who he managed to get fired.

McGrady left because of a lack of help. Not gonna argue that.

Dwight would have several reasons to leave if he chose to-- lack of help, horrible coach, bad management, small market, stunted game development, etc.

You're right about Shaq. The team was good. It was managements low ball offer and the Sentinel poll that ran Shaq out of town.

Penny... The less said the better. Didn't live up to expectations that may have been too high.

Either way the theme seems to follow an arrogant but ineffective management.

[bulldogger]

We have all the ingredients (Darko, Trevor, JJ) but dont have a good cook.

And the team is very young and needs to cook awhile. We can be as good as Chicago (also a young team) next year.

[Whipp]

I get what you're trying to say, but the way you said it is wrong. We got Shaq and surrounded him with Penny, Nick Anderson, Horace Grant, Dennis Scott, and Darrell Armstrong. He had plenty of help, that's why the Magic won 60 games and made it to the NBA finals. He left because the Magic lowballed him and he wanted to become a big fish in a big pond.

lets be real. the reason shaq left was to be a movie star. he just happened to have a successful basketball career as a fall back plan.

[bic]

I need to get a pair of these:

[sunshine]

Can someone tell me why Brian Hill keep playing Nelson? We are up by 5 and then Nelson come in and we loss.

[corpkid]

I need to get a pair of these:

Can I PLEASE have those back now, Bic?

[sunshine]

Howard is signing a 5 year 80 mil contract with the magic!!!!

[bulldogger]

Howard is signing a 5 year 80 mil contract with the magic!!!!

They should have made it a 5 year / 50 million dollar contract and bonus...

$1,000 per free throw during the regular season

$10,000 per free throw in the playoffs

$20,000 per free throw in The Finals

[sunshine]

Which mean he can retired at the young age of 26 with at least 80 mills in the bank.

[bic]

The Magic fired Brian Hill! Woohoo!

Now if only they weren't late in their decision (as usual) so we could have interviewed Rick Adelman before he was hired by Houston.

[sunshine]

Where can I apply for the job?

[orlandonative]

So it appears Kobe Bryant is pushing for a trade out of Los Angeles. I wanted to see what you guys thought of him as a potential Magic acquisition. I believe they have the necessary money, but if history is any indication we will probably pass him up for a scrub.

Any thoughts?

[bic]

After going on radio earlier today, airing out his dirty laundry and demanding a trade, he has sort of retracted his statements. Apparently Kobe and Phil Jackson had a heart to heart conversation and Kobe now wants to stay in L.A. as long as the organization brings in the pieces to make the Lakers a stronger competitor. He's really forcing management's hand and putting them in a very bad position.

IF Kobe were to be traded, the Magic have nothing other than Dwight that could make the deal happen. You could include the entire roster except for Dwight in a trade and be lucky if you got Lamar Odom, much less Kobe Bryant. I think the only way the Magic could land him would be to take part in a 3-way trade and we would likely lose Darko, Turkoglu, Ariza, future picks, cap space and other players. Besides, Orlando is a small market team that, besides having Dwight, doesn't seem like it would be too attractive to Bryant. I think he'd be looking to go to a place like Chicago or New York, or to a serious contender.

Other teams also have much more to offer than the Magic. Just today there have been rumors of Kobe for Dirk, Portland giving up its #1 pick (Greg Oden), Phoenix shipping Amare or Marion, the Bulls sending Hinrich, Gorden, PJ Brown and others, and the list can go on and on. Boston has Pierce who has been unhappy, Houston has T-Mac who has underperformed, Memphis has Pau Gasol who has been unhappy, New Jersey can sign and trade Vince Carter, the Carmelo-Iverson combo hasn't been a smash hit, the Wizards have Arenas and pieces, and the Knicks have a ton of overpaid hooligans to unload.

I'd love to see Kobe here as much as anybody....especially to see him and Dwight battle Shaq and Wade.....but I don't think it has a realistic chance at all.

[GRS328]

So it appears Kobe Bryant is pushing for a trade out of Los Angeles. I wanted to see what you guys thought of him as a potential Magic acquisition. I believe they have the necessary money, but if history is any indication we will probably pass him up for a scrub.

Any thoughts?

It definitely crossed my mind when I heard the news, and while I think it would amazing to see him in Magic uniform (not to mention EXACTLY the player to help send Dwight Howard's game through the stratosphere), I highly doubt it would ever happen. The main reason is that I truly believe Kobe doesn't want to be traded; I believe this is mainly a ploy on his part to force the Lakers' hand in bringing back Jerry West to GM the team - in fact I'd be willing to bet some $$ that's what it's about. Otherwise, even if a trade truly were to come to fruition, Kobe would almost certainly demand a large market team, i.e. the Knicks, Chicago or even the Clippers. I could see him in NY as Isiah would do nothing short of sell his soul for Kobe (or anybody for that matter). Also, Kobe really holds all the cards in this scenario as he has a no-trade clause in his contract, and would certainly veto any deal that sent him to a team he didn't want to go to. If a trade scenario did develop that would send him our way, I think he would balk at such a deal - moreso because of the Magic's history of poor management and their current uncertainty in the head coaching department than our market size.

One can sure dream though..... I'll go out on a limb and say a Kobe-Dwight tandem would be superior to the Shaq-Penny combo of yesteryear.

edit: bic beat me to the punch

[bic]

Haha..nearly identical points. Great minds think alike..

[orlandonative]

You guys bring up great points. However, I believe between the Steve Francis trade and various others we have enough cash to get a player such as a Bryant. Add to that the possibility of Grant Hill being forced into retirement and we would be more than fine.

In any case, the Magic have made it quite clear that they have little interest in more young players. That having been said, Who do you guys think they should go after this summer?

[GRS328]

In any case, the Magic have made it quite clear that they have little interest in more young players. That having been said, Who do you guys think they should go after this summer?

As far as I am concerned, the Magic's number 1 priority this free agent season is bringing in someone who will elevate Dwight's game. Dwight is the future of this franchise for a long time to come, and they need to bring in someone with that in mind. With that being said, there is only one free agent out there who's game would truly elevate Dwight and that is ex-Magic Chauncey Billups. He is one of the best floor general in the game. He commands defensive attention, can get to the basket off the dribble, hits the huge shots and is a very good defender. He is just so good in so many aspects. He makes players around him better, and that would be huge for a guy like Howard, who is already phenomenal but still has a lot of holes to fill up. I think he is the only free agent out there worth the Magic's big money. Unfortunately, I don't see him leaving Detroit.

Vince Carter would sell a lot of tickets, but I really don't feel he would elevate DH's game, or the team's as a whole, in any significant way. He can score and would draw defenses away from Howard, but he wouldn't do anything to help Dwight improve where he is already lacking. He would just create more dunk opportunities for Dwight. Exciting, yes, but not what he needs. I like Vince Carter, he's fun to watch. But I really don't see him as a player that would get the Magic to the next level. I don't even think he would get them out of the first round of the playoffs. But he will $ell tickets.

Next up, Rashard Lewis, who i see as being the most likely to wear a Magic uniform. He's fine player, but not a team changer. Again, he won't do too much to help Howard's advancement. His game is fit for an uptempo style offense, which we don't know if we'll have as we don't know who our coach will be (though it couldn't be any less uptempo than what we had with Brian Hill). Defensively, Lewis is a complete waste of space....

If I were the Magic GM, I would go after Gerald Wallace from Charlotte. A highly underrated player who is extremely athletic and can score. His game is very complementary to Dwight's, second to Billups out of the available FAs. He stretches defenses, is a decent passer and plays hard all the time (something i won't say about V Carter). And his defense is excellent. He is a is big steal guy and he can guard athletic guards and bigger forwards. And best of all, he is only 24 years old who has improved every year he has been in the league. He's young, but not unproven. He also won't command as huge a contract as Carter will, meaning the Magic could potentially keep Darko or use left over money to sign another quality free agent. Mark my words - Wallace will be the prize of this free agent class wherever he ends up with respect to value for production!

[bic]

We have a lot of cap space but not enough to offer a max contract and re-sign Darko without getting that big free agent through a sign-and-trade. I think giving Darko a new contract is a high priority for the Magic and as clueless as they may be, I think Otis is smart enough to not give a huge contract to guys like Carter and Rashard. Those are the two biggest names out there for the Magic but I'm not overly impressed by either. Getting Chauncey would be great but I seriously doubt he'll leave Detroit. Having Dooling possibly opt out of his contract could help make signing a free agent easier but it's unclear whether he'll definitely do that. I don't see Grant Hill returning...but if he should, I don't think the Magic would give him more than the veteran's minimum. He'd also have to come off the bench.

I don't think Vince Carter is the end-all solution to our problems but out of the available free agents out there, I think he's probably our best shot. I'm not convinced by Rashard and frankly, I'd much rather have Ray Allen if we could snatch any player from Seattle. Jesus would fit in nicely.

This off-season the Magic need to acquire:

-A scorer who can close games

-A big man to back up Dwight, Darko, and Battie

-A point guard. The Jameer/Arroyo/Dooling/Diener situation needs to be cleared up. I think that at least 2 of these players are goners in the off-season.

-Veteran leadership

It'd be great if we could get a McDyess type of PF (or another big who could step out and shoot jumpers) and a scoring SG/SF like VC. That would pretty much solve most of our problems.